The early part of the 20th century was a period of contradiction, rapid technological change and the beginnings of female emancipation. As businesses recovered from the war and people began to accumulate more wealth, the 1920s became a decade of opulence. What caused waistlines to drop and hemlines to rise?

Featuring items from the collections of Ivan Sayers, Claus Jahnke and Coquitlam Heritage, you are invited to Mackin house to explore and celebrate roaring 1920s fashion! Join us for fun and informative guided tours. Explore how the social, political, and cultural changes throughout the decade influenced the hemlines of the 1920s. Admission by donation.

We acknowledge the financial support of the Province of British Columbia

Coquitlam Heritage: A Mosaic of Our Past @ Place des Arts, February 16 to March 17, 2018.

Committed to preserving, honouring and promoting our past, Coquitlam Heritage brings together artworks to explore diverse aspects of our rich natural and cultural heritage. Artists examine, reflect, and draw inspiration from historic photographs, ephemera or artifacts, each with its own story to tell. This expansive interpretation of Coquitlam’s past will engage the audience in discussions about diversity and community change over time.

Residents and visitors alike know Coquitlam is a multicultural community with many stories to tell. Over the past century, the Coquitlam landscape has shifted as land use changed. Embedded within our natural landscape are stories which showcase, reflect on, and re-interpret what we know about logging, fishing, mining, mental health and early settler life. Artists reveal and bring these stories to life in this remarkable exhibition featuring the unique, thought provoking stories of our past and the pieces of history that inspire them.

My Coquitlam. My City.@Coquitlam City Centre Library, October 2017 to January 2018

What does Coquitlam mean to you?

Coquitlam Heritage is proud to present My Coquitlam, a project highlighting members of our community and what they are doing to shape the future of Coquitlam. Heritage not only celebrates our past accomplishments but also rejoices in the values, achievements and experiences of the people all around us today. In order to preserve, honor and promote the stories of our diverse modern heritage, we embarked on a set of Oral histories to capture a snapshot of the people living within the city in 2017. Visit our display at Coquitlam Public Library’s City Centre Branch to read these stories and meet some of your unique neighbours!

Remembering the Great War@ Coquitlam City Centre Library,November 3 to December 4, 2017

Between 1914 and 1918 Canada sent 625,000 men to war, a considerable contribution for a country with a total population of about 8 million. Men who enlisted did so out of pride for their country and commonwealth. They often viewed the conflict in terms of black and white or good vs. evil. Although there was an increased demand for soldiers, visible minorities were initially discouraged from joining the military. Despite this, thousands of First Nations, Metis, Africans, Sikh, Chinese and Japanese men joined and served. One in ten men did not return from this war. Join Coquitlam Heritage at City Centre Library in November 2017 as we remember the First World War.

We would like to thank Dean Fraser, Mark Ivins, Cary Price and Fred Hazell for loaning us items to display in this exhibit. We are so grateful for the opportunity to collaborate with these gentleman from the Canadian Military Education Centre! For more information on military history, events and programming please visit their website.

Maillardville, a francophone community nestled just above the Fraser River, has long been a centre of culture, industry and history in Coquitlam. Over 100 years ago, a bustling sawmill sat on the river, aptly named Fraser Mills, where our French-Canadian community grew overnight. The first wave of French-Canadian migrants arrived at the train station on September 28th, 1909. A labour shortage at Fraser Mills combined with mounting anti-immigrant rhetoric in Canada during this time encouraged their migration into the community, forever changing the Coquitlam landscape. Join us as we explore artifacts and stories from one francophone family who came with the second wave of migrants in May 1910. Theirs, like many, is the story of coming home.

A Man's World: 1900-1920 @ Mackin House, June 6 to October 7 2017

As a follow up to our Woman's World exhibit, Mackin House is proud to dedicate the summer of 2017 to men! The early 20th century marked drastic changes for societies and cultures all over the world. Canadian men across all classes, ages, and ethnicities had unique experiences during the period between 1900 and 1920. Come to Mackin House and explore the world men experienced in the early days of Coquitlam’s history.

A Woman's World: 1900-1920 @ Mackin House, February 7 to May 27, 2017

The early twentieth century was a period of upheaval for societies and cultures across the globe. Canadian women across all classes, ages, races and sexual orientations had unique experiences during the period 1900-1920. Join us at Mackin House to explore the world women experienced during the early days of Coquitlam’s history.

Women were the heart of the home, providing nurturing care to their families while navigating an increasingly complex world. Who were the women who populated early Coquitlam? What was life like for women in the wilderness? How did women from different classes and across ethnicities navigate the increasing complexity of life in a new country?

The world of women changed drastically following the end of the Great War. With the success of the suffragette movement in Canada, women began to assert their independence both inside and outside the home. Visit Mackin House to discover how women navigated common issues of the time and to uncover how attitudes of the modern woman emerged.

Science & Social Change: Early 20th Century Medicine @ Mackin House,
September 7 to November 1, 2016

The early 20th century period reflected shifting social and scientific attitudes to healthcare. During this period, healthcare was forced to respond to unprecedented challenges, including a rapidly increasing population, urbanization, and major public health crises on a scale never seen before.

Scientific development lead to new discoveries in treatment and prevention. Simultaneously, public health was brought to the forefront of political thought, resulting in the founding of the first federal Department of Health and paving the way for healthcare as we know it.

Increasing mental health awareness led to the development of psychiatry and psychology as a part of medicine. Locally, this can be seen in the founding of the Hospital for the Mind in 1904. Now, the Riverview Hospital grounds stand as a reminder of our mental health heritage.